What's a girl to do when she finds foods of love hiding on her spice rack, in the cupboards, even in the fridge and freezer?

Cook with them, of course -- and that's what I've been doing for the past couple of weeks here on The Perfect Pantry. If you're still thinking about what to make for your sweetheart this weekend, try incorporating some of these love-inducing ingredients from your own pantry:

Pistachio nutsLentils (are you as surprised as I am to find these on the list?)Arugula (I don't know why; I think it's delicious.)River snails (honestly, who has these in the pantry?)Skink flesh/lizard (or this?)

So, what's going to be on your menu for Valentine's Day?

Beef stew

Sometimes, for your valentine, you just need to make the thing he or she loves the most. Here's a recipe with hardly any known aphrodisiac ingredients. But, trust me, this stew makes my sweetie swoon every time I make it. And, like all stews, it's even better the next day. Serves 8-10; can be frozen.

Directions

Heat oil in a very large (12-quart) stockpot. Dredge meat lightly in flour and, adding a few pieces at a time, brown meat thoroughly on all sides (remove the pieces as they're browned, into a bowl; when all of the meat is browned, add back the reserved meat and juices). Add sliced onion, and the garlic, and cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring, until the onion becomes translucent. Then, add the thyme, bay leaf, wine, mustard, tomato paste, oyster sauce, peppers and paprika. Bring to a boil, cover, and reduce heat to lowest simmer. Cook for 2 hours, stirring occasionally.

Add all of the vegetables and cook, covered, for another hour or more, until all of the vegetables are tender (the potatoes will start to fall apart a bit). Stir frequently to keep the meat from sticking to the bottom of the pot. The sauce should thicken, but if you'd like it thicker, stir in a solution of 1 Tbsp arrowroot dissolved in 3 Tbsp water. Don't over-thicken; the sauce will thicken on its own by the next day, assuming you have some stew left over.

I'm surprised at how many I have on your list in my kitchen without even trying. Obviously I need to get to work but that list already has me thinking.
Love the heart shaped dish with such gorgeous beef stew!

I pride myself on having almost every spice one can think of and if I do not have it I at least typically know what it is. No I do not mean I have all of the assorted blends but I mean straight spices/herbs. Your list actually got me to hit up wikipedia for "asafetida powder". I rarely have a need to look up a spice aside from double checking to see what is typically in a blend, but alas you got me. Thanks for helping me learn something new.

Although not on your list, for us lobster is a must this valentines day. If you know where to look online (or if your super lucky, locally) you will find that it is currently very cheap in comparison to what it often goes for. Just know where to look or at very least price check a whole lot as some sites do not alter their prices (ever I think) and are crazy high (3-5 times amount).

According to your list, some sort of fusion curry/mole sauce over eggs will have us running for the bed before dinner is even over! lol Perhaps the menu will be aphrodisiac mash-up Saturday night! The stew looks lovely, by the way:)

I really do have pretty much everything in my pantry, but River snails and Skink flesh/lizard. It’s not the fact that I’m Jewish and can’t eat this sort of stuff, but even if I could there are just some things, gotta pass on.

I love your take on Beef Stew I’ll have to substitute the oyster sauce (my sub for this is fish sauce). Then there is the thyme I only have Cuban thyme in the garden (it will work, it’s just really strong) I have something in the garden that pretty much destroyed most of my herbs and the Cuban thyme is one of the only ones that survived - barely.
Thanks for the idea of using the heart shaped dish that was a great touch to what looks like a really yummy recipe.

I don't think that either celery or cucumbers are the slightest bit aphrodisiac, but a nice earthy lentil stew would accommodate almost any number or combination of the ingredients on the pantry aphrodisiacs list. I do love lentils. I haven't decided yet what to make for Valentine's day, but I think a curry would be very nice, and I'll probably bake a carrot cake (and some chocolate cookies, for good measure).

Great stew but I need to add some Guinness Stout! What do you use the asfoetida in???? There's an old John Wayne western movie with James Caan and Dean Martin that used asfoetida and a few other ingredients as a remedy for a hangover.
BTW - I like dark chocolate!

In Curacao my husband ordered iguana at a local restaurant on the obscure/not-so-touristy end of the island. The hostess came over and "warned" me with lots of winks and innuendos, that it should be on your list.

After reading your post, I realize I have an insane amount of aphrodisiac foods in my kitchen. Funny, I haven't noticed them doing their, shall we say, thing. Hmmm...maybe it's the lack of river snails or skink flesh, lol.

While we're on the topic of river snails, can you tell me what those snails they sell via plastic containers in the grocery are for? No liquid or anything, just dry and crammed into plastic tubes.

Surely these aren't for escargot are they? Packaged like this, the snails themselves would be dry and dead, no? Or do they reconstitute with water? Are am I missing something here and they sell the shells as-is for some culinary purpose unbenounced to me? Seriously. I need someone to clear up this mystery, because I'm earnestly puzzled.

what a delicious aphrodisiac food. Maca is another aphrodisiac food . It can be used as food ingredients. Just sprinkled 1 tablespoon of maca powder. It is an organic food so there is nothing to worry.

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Welcome to The Perfect Pantry®

My name is Lydia Walshin. From my tiny kitchen in Boston's South End, I share recipes that use what we keep in our pantries, the usual and not-so-usual ingredients that spice up our lives. Thanks so much for visiting.